DescriptionAre you a highly motivated recent (or near) PhD graduate with expertise in cell culture/molecular biology/virology?Prestigious Postdoctoral Fellowship on offer - kick-start your research career in virologyJoin a dynamic and multi-disciplinary team at CSIRO Health & Biosecurity

Postdoctoral Fellowships at CSIRO provide opportunities to scientists and engineers, who have completed their doctorate and have less than three years relevant postdoctoral work experience. These fellowships will help launch their careers, provide experience that will enhance their career prospects, and facilitate the recruitment and development of potential leaders for CSIRO.

Postdoctoral Fellows are appointed for up to three years and will work closely with a leading Research Scientist in their respective field. They carry out innovative, impactful research of strategic importance to CSIRO with the possibility of novel and important scientific outcomes.

With mentoring, you will conduct innovative research with the aim to develop rabbit tissue-specific organoid cultures for the cultivation of rabbit caliciviruses. The platform will subsequently be used to explore rabbit calicivirus host-pathogen interactions, enabling novel insights into the fundamental biology and elusive virulence and resistance mechanisms of these viruses. As part of your work, you will also have the opportunity to travel to the USA to gain experience working with organoid culture systems and, as such, the willingness and ability to do this is essential.

Some of your duties will include:

Designing and conducting animal infection experiments to generate suitable samples for histopathological and immunohistofluorescence studies with the aim to identify host cell type(s) for rabbit caliciviruses.Designing and conducting research investigating the development of organoid cultures from rabbit tissues.Using the newly developed rabbit organoid platforms to cultivate rabbit caliciviruses, and subsequently designing and undertaking detailed studies on the fundamental biology of rabbit caliciviruses.Under the direction of senior research scientists, carry out innovative, impactful research of strategic importance to CSIRO that will, where possible, lead to novel and important scientific outcomes.Collect and manage data, and undertake appropriate analyses to generate publishable results.

SkillsSpecifically you will need:

A doctorate (or will shortly satisfy the requirements of a PhD) in a relevant discipline area, such as virology, molecular biology, or veterinary pathology.The willingness and ability to travel to the USA for a 2-3 month period to gain experience working with organoid culture systems.Demonstrated strong research experience in cell culture.Strong demonstrated skills and experience in the area of molecular biology and/or virology.